


Take My Hand (We'll Pretend We Could Run Away)

by EdrickSnowHuh



Category: British Royalty RPF
Genre: F/F, markleton
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-19
Updated: 2018-08-19
Packaged: 2019-06-29 20:26:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 976
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15736749
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EdrickSnowHuh/pseuds/EdrickSnowHuh
Summary: A short series of three Markleton one-shots:1. Breathless2. Do You Ever Wonder3. The Breakfast Club





	1. Breathless

He used to leave her breathless. 

From the day she met William, she had thought that no person could ever make her feel the way he did when he said her name for the first time. She had thought that she would forever be lost in his charming smile, at home in the way that he held her.

She didn’t think those things for long. Life as a Royal was more gruelling than she could possibly have imagined, and she didn’t know how William, or any of them, had gone along with it for so many years. He was always busy meeting Ambassador This or General That, and she didn’t blame him, but before she knew it the prince that had made her breathless was no more.

The children had helped, for a time. He’d been given more time at home, away from his Royal responsibilities, but even in those months he had changed. Will was wonderful with the children, a perfect father, with the kindness and love of his mother in everything that he did. He never let the children see what she saw. The toll of his duties left him distant, distracted, and tired. Surrounded by people in Anmer Hall as she was, she had never felt more alone.

The day she became a Royal she had sworn she would be more. She wouldn’t ever be just a doting wife or a pretty princess, she would be an activist, a force for change, for good, but nobody was interested in what she had to say. They wanted to hear from the Duke and Duchess together. As the children grew older, she could accompany Will on more and more of his visits and engagements, so here she was, taking the hand of the woman whose smile reminded her of the way the sun kisses the Earth in the evening.

‘My name is Meghan, it’s a pleasure to finally meet you, Kate.’ 

Kate. Breathless.


	2. Do You Ever Wonder

Meghan had a habit of ‘forgetting’ to knock. 

Once it was the dining room, while Kate was on the phone to her sister, Pippa. Another time it had been the house itself, Kate had come out of the kitchen and nearly dropped the plates she was holding as the sight of the unexpected American lounging on her sofa made her jump.  
The last time it was the bathroom, when Kate was shoulder deep in the tub, nestled in the bubbles after a long day on her feet.

Today, it was the bedroom.  
Kate perched on the edge of the bed she shared with William, and cradled her wedding dress in her lap. Seven years, and where had they gone? In most people’s eyes, she was living a fairytale. She had married a Prince, had three beautiful children, she lived in a palace where servants saw to her every need....she should be happy. She should be bloody ecstatic, every waking moment of the day. She snorted at the idea. How could she be happy when she had no control? 

The lace detail of her dress was soft under her fingertips, and the back of her hand felt a sudden wetness on her skin. Kate had begun to cry. 

The servants that brought her tea called her ‘Duchess’, never Kate. She wasn’t allowed to choose what to wear when she left the palace, if she was allowed to leave the palace. Her entire life thrust into the public eye, her every move scrutinised. Her hands balled into fists, clenching the delicate material as she forced herself not to sob. 

The door swung open. 

‘Kate, I’ve had it up to here. Why do these people insist that everything I wear is black and white? Have they never heard of colour? I mean, we all know Charles is terrified of anything not white but...Kate?’

Meghan noticed the lack of the usual response, and quickly crossed the room to plant herself firmly at Kate’s side. 

‘Kate? C’mon sweetie, talk to me.’ 

She reached an arm around the other woman’s shoulders, using her other hand to gently tease Kate’s fingers from the fabric of the dress, tangling them with her own. She felt Kate relax ever so slightly into her side.

‘It’s been seven years, Meghan. I haven’t had any control over my life for seven years, and I’ll never have it again. Even if I left the family, I’d always be the Ex-Royal. This dress is so beautiful, perfect really. Everything I ever wanted in my wedding dress, but I didn’t choose it. I couldn’t even choose my own-’ 

Kate choked on the words as the tears traced her cheeks. Meghan brought the hand wrapped around her shoulder to her face, and began to wipe away the tears she could reach with her thumb. She cradled the other woman’s jaw in her palm, feeling the softness of her skin. It sent tingles running through her fingertips.

‘I know sweetie, I know. But we have each other now. You have someone to talk to, someone who didn’t grow up like this, who understands. My mom is a yoga teacher, not a queen, and I might be newer to this than you are but I know I wouldn’t have made it this far without you.’

Meghan turned Kate’s face to look the her in the eye, and was met with a softness she had never seen her give to William. Kate licked her bottom lip, and held the gaze. Her voice was unsteady, but she spoke anyway.

‘Do you...do you ever wonder? If things had been different?’

Meghan seemed for the first time to waver, her lips parting slowly and her breath catching in her throat. Her eyes flicked down to where Kate’s fingers were still locked with her own, darted up to her mouth, settled back on her brown eyes.

‘More than you know, sweetie’.


End file.
